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Emperor geese are considered the pinnacle of North American waterfowling, and with good reason. Author Scott Haugen had a memorable experience hunting these birds on Cold Bay. (SCOTT HAUGEN)
HAIL TO THE EMPERORS RARE BUT RECOVERED WESTERN ALASKA GEESE A CHALLENGING, REWARDING BIG GAME-LIKE HUNT BY SCOTT HAUGEN s a flock of emperor geese skirted the string of decoys lining the beach – just out of range – my heart sank. Leading the flock of a dozen birds was a stud gander – its thick neck and hefty body standing out above the rest. That was the goose I wanted; the one I’d been holding out for. Following a 2-mile hike down a sandy beach along Cold Bay, we set out a couple dozen decoys along the dark shoreline,
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then nestled into the tall golden grass as daylight broke on the horizon. The tide was out, the kelp covered the high-water mark, and the snow fell. In less than three minutes a flock of five emperors spotted the decoys, banked in and landed 20 yards from me. Two adult birds stood out but there wasn’t a mature gander, so I watched the stunning geese feed for over five minutes while hoping another flock would come
by. Another flock did approach, followed by three more. Each bunch of emperors had a shooter gander, but none offered a clear shot.
AS EMPEROR GEESE FLY the beach in search of food, they are low to the water in a tight horizontal line. Shot choices must be precise, as the limit is one bird per hunter, per season, for residents. Only a limited number of nonresidents
aksportingjournal.com | OCTOBER 2021
ALASKA SPORTING JOURNAL
51
